Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the level of demand on the UK Research and Innovation budget.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
In contrast to the number of open calls that UKRI runs, which remained relatively stable with an additional surge to deliver specific COVID-19 related funding, the number of applications for funding from UKRI has risen over the last year, including in response to COVID-19. To date the trend has already shown an increase of over 1,000 applications ending December 2020, with a further projection of another 2,000 applications to be received in the final quarter. These increases are against an active portfolio of approximately 14,000 grants.
UKRI has also responded to increased demand to help stabilise the system and the pressures felt across the research and innovation community. Active grants continue to attract a high number of requested changes through their life, but more recently hundreds more enquiries have resulted from COVID-19 disruption, generating many requests for both costed and no cost extensions with £90 million in costed grant extensions paid this year.
Other stabilising interventions that UKRI has made in response to the pandemic include bringing forwards £100 million of Quality Related funding from Academic Year 2020-21 to AY 2019-20, and providing additional funding through the Sustaining University Research Expertise (SURE) Fund in financial year 2020-21.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans his Department has to support the post-pandemic career development of early career researchers.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government invests in research talent through PhDs and fellowship schemes. UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is the single biggest funder of PhDs in the UK and currently funds between six and seven thousand PhDs per year (around 53% in STEM) through its studentships and training grants, including Centres for Doctoral Training and Doctoral Training Partnerships.
Multi-year fellowship schemes funded by BEIS are delivered both by the National Academies and UKRI and are targeted at different career stages, from early career researchers to research professors and chairs. These schemes support the development and progression of a broad spectrum of researchers and their teams while supporting their excellent research.
The Department is currently working with UKRI on the development of an R&D People and Culture Strategy as one of my top priorities. The R&D People and Culture Strategy will look to ensure the UK has the people we need at all levels, working in a culture that gets the best out of everyone and delivers the best outcomes for the country. A key part of this will be ensuring the R&D workforce has the capacity and capability to deliver the government’s ambitions for R&D with enough people with the right skills across disciplines, and throughout career stages and job roles.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for the UK's association to Horizon Europe.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
BEIS Ministers regularly speak to my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer on a range of issues, including R&D funding. I am pleased that the UK reached an agreement to take part in the Horizon Europe programme. Association to Horizon has been welcomed by businesses and the research community and will bring huge benefits to the UK. We have always been clear that Horizon funding complements domestic funding programmes.
At the Spending Review in November, the Government committed to investing £14.6 billion in research and development in 2021/22. Spending Review was complete before the outcome of negotiations with the EU was known. As part of our ongoing Departmental allocations process, we are continuing to work with HM Treasury on the costs of Horizon Europe.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to encourage the decommissioning of older aircraft.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government remains in dialogue with industry and overseas governments about the potential benefits, practicalities and implications of an aircraft scrappage scheme.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he will take in response to the 2020 Spending Review to support the research undertaken by medical research charities.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government is aware of the challenges, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, that medical research charities are currently facing.
The Government already provides significant funding to charities’ research, for example through Research England’s Quality Related (QR) charity support funding. This year charity QR will amount to £204m, to support charity funded research in universities in England and equivalent support is provided in Scotland through devolved funding arrangements.
Additionally, the Government supports this research through investments in the necessary infrastructure, through collaborations with UKRI and through the tax system. In 2018-19 over £1.3bn in tax relief on donations was received through Gift Aid benefitting all charities, including those carrying out vital medical research.
BEIS has been working with the Association of Medical Research Charities to develop an appropriate approach to supporting the important research that their members fund.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what guidance his Department has published for employers helping to meet the support needs of bereaved employees.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government has published several sets of guidance to help employers support the need of bereaved employees.
In 2014, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills commissioned the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) to publish guidance on how to manage bereavement in the workplace. The guidance was first published in 2014 and last updated in May 2018 (https://archive.acas.org.uk/media/4114/Managing-bereavement-in-the-workplace---a-good-practice-guide/pdf/Managing-bereavement-in-the-workplace-a-good-practice-guide.pdf).
Earlier this year, the Department introduced this year a new entitlement to Bereavement Leave and Pay for employees who lost a child. Guidance was published on GOV.UK in April 2020 to help employers managing this new policy (https://www.gov.uk/employers-parental-bereavement-pay-leave).
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the health benefits of bereavement leave.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government recognises that the death of a family member is deeply upsetting for those involved. The death of a child is particularly tragic, and this is why the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy we introduced Parental Bereavement Leave and Pay in April this year.
All employees have right to take a reasonable amount of time off work for an emergency involving a dependant, including in the case of bereavements. The entitlement could, for example, be used to make funeral and other arrangements.
We expect employers to respond with compassion and understanding in the case of all bereavements and we have given them the tools that they need to do this. In 2014 Acas published their guidance on Managing a Bereavement in the Workplace: A Good Practice Guide. This is available on the ACAS website- www.acas.org.uk.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
What plans he has to review the operation of the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The Government has continued to examine and make reforms to the whistleblowing regime, both to the guidance and legislative framework of protections for workers. The most recent reforms came into effect last year.
The Government will continue to listen to stakeholders and will, of course, review the recent reforms once there is sufficient evidence of their impact.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for sites to be informed whether they have been successful in securing a grant towards development as a spaceport.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
Our Industrial Strategy recognises the role of new markets like space launch in driving growth across the UK. The Government is delivering a major programme to enable companies to offer small satellite launch and sub-orbital spaceflight from UK spaceports
We have considered 26 proposals for grant funding and expect to make an announcement on the results of this process shortly.
Asked by: Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party - Central Ayrshire)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for sites to be informed whether they have been successful in securing a grant towards development as a spaceport.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
Our Industrial Strategy recognises the role of new markets like space launch in driving growth across the UK. The Government is delivering a major programme to enable companies to offer small satellite launch and sub-orbital spaceflight from UK spaceports
We have considered 26 proposals for grant funding and expect to make an announcement on the results of this process shortly.